Panasonic PV-DV53 and USB
 

My Panasonic PV-DV53 came with a firewire cord and I want to get a USB cord for it. Is it possible? Where do I get a USB cord for it?

Hi Matt,
Reading the technical specs online for your model camera indicates that the camera does have a USB port, but just in case you are not aware, you will not be able to transfer the full-resolution dv signal to your computer through that port using any of the standard editing applications that I know of due to the extremely low transfer speed of USB. Although some apps MAY recognize the USB, it will literally take you DAYS to transfer the full dv signal through it.

Typically, the USB port would be used transfer the still pictures from the camcorder, or also for low-res web streaming stuff. According to the tech specs, it looks like this model saves the digital stills to the tape (at 640 x 480) rather than to a dedicated SD or CF card etc), so I am not sure what the method would be to pull the stills off, but would assume that the camcorder came with requisite software that would do this. The models I own save stills to memory cards, but I have never used such a feature as the resolution of the stills is quite poor in my opinion, so I take stills from dedicated still shot cameras.

You should be able to pick up the correct cable from any big box electronics outlet like Best Buy or CompUSA, Frys, etc... It is usually the same type of miniUSB to USB cable that comes with most models of digital still cameras.

Just buy a Firewire card. They cost $20 these days.

You need a miniUSB to USB cable. You can order a replacement from Panasonic if you can't find a suitable one at a local computer store.

My DV953 came with a USB cable and no Firewire cable. Look closely to make sure you aren't confusing them. The DV port is underneath the handstrap and the USB port is on the front left of the lens.

Jonathan is right that you can't transfer video over USB from the DV953. It has a 12 Mbps USB 2 port. However, you can transfer stills and use the cam for a webcam using the USB port. You will need a driver for the USB and for webcam. If you don't have the CD that came with the camcorder, you can download the drivers from the Panasonic Customer Service website, or buy the CD from their parts webpage.